1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an upright type vacuum cleaner, and more particularly, to an upright type vacuum cleaner having a cyclone type dust collector capable of separating by centrifugal force and collecting minute particle dust and large particle contaminants from the air that is drawn in through a suction brush of the vacuum cleaner.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, an upright type vacuum cleaner includes a suction brush disposed at an end of a vacuum cleaner body for movement across a cleaning surface. An inner space of the vacuum cleaner body is divided into a dust chamber and a motor chamber. A dust filter is removably disposed in the dust chamber. A motor is disposed in the motor driving chamber.
When the motor operates, a strong suction force is generated at the suction brush. The suction force draws contaminants through the suction brush and into the vacuum cleaner body. Once inside the vacuum cleaner body, the air passes through the dust filter, which is disposed in the dust chamber, and is discharged out of the vacuum cleaner. During this process, contaminants in the air are filtered out at the dust filter.
In the upright type vacuum cleaner described above, contaminants, such as dust or dirt, are collected with the use of a dust filter. Accordingly, a user has to provide additional filters for replacement. In addition, the dust filter must be replaced manually, which can be unhygienic for the user.
The present invention has been made to overcome the above-mentioned problems of the related art. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an upright type vacuum cleaner having a cyclone type dust collector for separating by centrifugal force and collecting minute particle dust and larger particle contaminants from the air that is drawn in through a suction brush of the vacuum cleaner.
The above object is accomplished by an upright type vacuum cleaner according to the present invention, including: a body having a dust chamber and a motor driving chamber; a suction brush connected to the body; and a cyclone type dust collector removably disposed in the dust chamber. The cyclone type dust collector, which separates and collects dust and contaminants from the air that is drawn in through the suction brush, includes a cover, first and second cyclone receptacles, and a lower door. The cover has a first air inlet connected to a suction hose, which in turn is connected to the suction brush and the dust chamber, and an air outlet, which is connected to an exhaust hose. The exhaust hose is connected to the dust chamber and the motor driving chamber. The first cyclone receptacle is connected to the cover and induces the air from the first air inlet into a vortex, using the centrifugal force of the vortex to separate and collect larger particle contaminants from the air. The second cyclone receptacle is disposed in the first cyclone receptacle in a manner such that the second cyclone receptacle is also connected to the cover. The second cyclone receptacle includes a grill having a plurality of fine holes, through which air rising from the bottom of the first cyclone receptacle flows, and a second air inlet to guide the air from the fine holes of the grill into a vortex. The lower door is removably mounted on a lower open end of the first cyclone receptacle to permit access to the contaminants collected in the first and second cyclone receptacles, thereby facilitating disposal of the contaminants. The cyclone type dust collector further includes a reverse flow preventing section for preventing a reverse flow of the contaminants from the lower door.
The reverse flow preventing section includes an annular main rib protruding from an inner circumference of the first cyclone receptacle.
The reverse flow preventing section further includes a reverse flow prevention pipe, which protrudes from a lower center of the second cyclone receptacle, having an annular main rib protruding from an inner circumference of the first cyclone receptacle, and a sub-rib protruding from an outer circumference of the reverse flow prevention pipe for preventing a reverse flow of the contaminants.
Further, it is preferable that the main rib is downwardly inclined toward the lower door.
The sub-rib integrally extends from an upper end of the reverse flow prevention pipe radially and is downwardly inclined toward the lower door.
The grill includes a plurality of fine holes formed along the outer circumference of the second cyclone receptacle, with each fine hole being spaced apart by a predetermined distance from adjacent fine holes.
The cyclone type dust collector further includes a hinge shaft for hinging a side of the lower door to a lower side of the first cyclone receptacle, and a locking and unlocking section for locking and unlocking the other side of the lower door to and from the first cyclone receptacle.
The locking and unlocking section includes a locking groove formed in the lower door, a locking rod movably disposed in the first cyclone receptacle to engage the locking groove, a first press member for biasing the locking rod toward the locking groove, and an unlocking unit for disengaging the locking rod from the locking groove, by overcoming an elastic force of the first pressing member.
The unlocking unit also includes an unlocking button disposed on a side of the first cyclone receptacle, a second pressing member for biasing the unlocking button outwardly; a wire, one end of which is connected to the locking rod, and a pivot member. One end of the pivot member is connected to the wire, and the other end is connected to the unlocking button to disengage the locking rod from the locking groove.
The locking and unlocking section is formed in a handle which is disposed on an outer circumference of the first cyclone receptacle.
The above object is also accomplished by an upright type vacuum cleaner according to the present invention, including: a body having a dust chamber and a motor driving chamber; a suction brush connected to the vacuum cleaner body and interconnected to the dust chamber through a connecting tube; a cyclone type dust collector detachably disposed in the dust chamber for separating by centrifugal force and collecting dust and contaminants from the air that is drawn in through the suction brush. The cyclone type dust collector includes: a first cyclone receptacle, substantially cylindrical in shape having two open ends; a second cyclone receptacle coaxially disposed within the first cyclone receptacle with a predetermined space therebetween; a cover for covering upper ends of the first and second cyclone receptacles; a base for covering the lower ends of the first and second cyclone receptacles; and an air exhaust pipe for interconnecting the second cyclone receptacle with the motor driving chamber.
Here, the cyclone type dust collector further includes an annular reverse flow prevention rib protruding from an inner circumference of the first cyclone receptacle toward a center axis at a predetermined sloping angle. It is preferable that the reverse flow prevention rib is downwardly inclined, i.e. toward the base.
The cover includes a tube provided along the inner circumference of the dust chamber. The tube is interconnected with a connecting channel connected to the dust chamber. An inflow pipe radially extends a predetermined length along a ceiling and an inner circumference of the cover. The inflow pipe is interconnected with the tube. The cover further includes suction pipe extending a predetermined depth from a center of the ceiling of the cover. The suction pipe is interconnected with the exhaust pipe.
The suction pipe has a funnel-like shape, in which a free end of the suction pipe radially extends from the suction pipe, gradually increasing a diameter of the suction pipe.
The second cyclone receptacle is substantially cylindrical in shape and has a plane upper side, a tapered side gradually decreasing in a diameter of the cylinder, and a bottom side for covering one end of the cyclone receptacle. The plane upper side has a dual structure formed of an outer body having a plurality of fine holes uniformly formed therein, and an inner body disposed within the outer body at a predetermined distance from the outer body. The bottom side has a guide tube protruding from the center to a predetermined height of the second cyclone receptacle.
The cyclone type dust collector further includes an air outlet formed in an upper end of the inner body of the second cyclone receptacle. The air outlet has an opening that partially overlaps with an opening of the inflow pipe of the cover.
The cyclone type dust collector further includes a guide tube radially extending in a diagonal direction for inducing the air from the air outlet into a vortex.
It is also preferable that the exhaust pipe includes a first exhaust sub-pipe, a second exhaust sub-pipe, and a third exhaust sub pipe. The first, second and exhaust third sub-pipes are respectively formed on the outer surfaces of the cover, the first cyclone receptacle, and the base, while being interconnected with each other.
The second exhaust sub-pipe may be spaced apart from the first cyclone receptacle so as to serve as a handle for the cyclone type dust collector.
The base is removably connected to the first cyclone receptacle.